Vale Jon Baird - Legendary 4ZZZ Journalist

One of 4ZZZ's original journalists passed away quietly mid December 2018. This special sedition of the Anarchy Show is dedicated to Jon. Linda was is joined in the studio by Jon's brother Jamie, nephew Joshua, and life long friend Ben. Jon helped establish Locked In (then called Inside Information). His coverage of the Boggo Road Riots won national awards. 4ZZZ broke the story and was able to provide exclusive coverage due to inside information accessible because of Jon's sources inside the notorious prison. The mainstream media used Jon as a source during the infamous uprising. Among other demands of the inmates was the right to listen to 4ZZZ, a vital lifeline to the outside world for those inside (then and now). While many of the changes which occurred as a result of the riots have since been eroded, the right to listen to 4ZZZ still stands and if you listen to the station from 6-8pm Monday the show Jon helped establish is still on-air. When Jon travelled to England his voice could still be heard on a series of reports named London Line. Back Australia in the 90's Jon rejoined the newsroom. The programs Brisbane and Beyond, and Brisbane Line were enriched by his journalistic talent and passion for social justice. When he left Australia again to teach English in Taiwan and then China he still appeared on the station giving intermittent reports for the Anarchy Show (Subversión #1312). He wanted his reports from China called Behind the Bamboo Curtain. Always ready for a party and some mischief Jon was a great supporter of Brisbane music and venues. And even in Chengdu, where he taught at a university he enjoyed huge punk gigs some of which were broken up by police. Jon had a gift for story telling and comedy. Now's the time for us to remember him by telling stories about him, no holes barred, as he would have done to us.